Classroom Newsletter

Classroom Newsletter September 2017 Dear Families, It is hard to believe that one month of school has passed! The children continue to work nicely learning the routines. I hope that homework is becoming more of a routine and the children are working with more independence. If at any time your child is having difficulty with a particular assignment, please write a note on the paper indicating this. Also, remember that the planner and reading log must be signed every night. Your child will receive a homework pass if all responsibilities were fulfilled for the month. In reading, we continue to increase our stamina for reading independently. The children are doing a great job with staying on task during this time. They are learning reading strategies such as connecting, visualizing, questioning, predicting, noticing and figuring out what we read. Retelling throughout a book is part of the process of assuring that read material is retained. These strategies will be useful when reading more difficult texts. In writing, the children continue to work in their writing notebooks. The enthusiasm exhibited is wonderful to see. We are working on sentence review, focusing on parts of speech and applying these skills to writing stronger and more descriptive pieces. Cursive handwriting is moving along beautifully. We are learning new skills with spelling. Please make sure your child practices their Red Word list in addition to their unit list daily. This should be kept in your child’s Stay at Home Folder. In math we have been reviewing basic skills learned in 2nd grade (counting money, telling time and regrouping). Please reinforce these skills whenever possible. We are finishing up our chapter on place value and will have our first math test on Tuesday, October 10th. The children are doing nicely with the weekly math fact test. Please remember that your child needs to practice their facts on the wipe-off sleeve. This should be kept in your child’s Stay at Home Folder. These skills are necessary for solving increasingly difficult math problems. In social studies, we are working on our Geography Unit. The students are enjoying learning about where they are in our world and how to identify different parts on a map. We will be celebrating Halloween on Tuesday, October 31st. A notice will be coming home from our classroom parent to further explain our celebration. Thank you in advance for supporting our curriculum!